"Your highness, it is time to wake up." [ 'KNOCK KNOCK'] "Your highness? Please forgive me your highness, I am entering the room."
Gently opening the door, a maid entered the room with a slight frown on her face as around this time the prince would usually be readying for his morning classes. As her eyes swept over the bed however, shock, fear, confusion, despair…, concern, all these emotions flew across her mind as she cried out for help.
Blood. Lots and lots of blood. The curtains, bed sheets, walls, it seemed as if a mini war went on in the room. The gold-plated bed was now a dark crimson whilst the sweet-smelling scent that was usually apparent, was replaced by a putrid, burning one.
The guards who were stationed not too far away from the room were the first to arrive. They instantly ran to the bedside and tried to assess the situation as best they could. One of them ran to call for doctors, one went to alert the royal family whilst one went to alert the royal guardsmen and other personnel. In a matter of minutes, the palaces greatest doctors were on scene.
"My son! What happened to my son! Please, someone, anyone tell me what happened to Vulcan!" a bereaved cry emanated from outside the room, shaking the hearts of all those who heard it. The queen had gotten a glimpse of the carnage in the room before her husband was able to cover her eyes.
"Annais, don't… don't go. Let the doc…doctors and men do their job…" King Edwin said faintly. As king he was prepared for death, he was prepared for assassination attempts, he was prepared for someone to try and take the lives of those he held dear, but no man ever, is truly prepared, to see their child butchered. The king barely able to keep his emotions in check stumbled, because the next thing he saw, broke him. In the corner of the room, underneath the tablecloth of a small bedside table, a foot and eye laid. Anger? No not anger. The emotion the king felt at that point was just pure sadness. Before he fell unconscious, the king actually wished, that his child was indeed dead.
---------------
-Where…where am I-
-What in Jesus name is that smell-
-Huh! Why can't I move! Wait! Why can't I talk-
-Hello! Anyone! –
"Your highness! Thank the Ancients you woke up!" a familiar female voice exclaimed. The voice was indeed very familiar but he couldn't quite figure out where he had heard it before.
"Prince Vulcan! Can you hear me? It's your maid Lisa. You can hear me, right? Wait a moment I am going to tell the others!" the girl said. The sound of her rushing out the room was all that told Vulcan that the girl had left the room.
-Right. I remember now. That's Lisa my maid from since I was a little boy…-
-Maid…from…childhood…. –
-Since when did I have a maid? Hold on what did she call me! –
--------------------------------------------One Week After----------------------------------------
"Good morning your highness. How do you feel this morning? Are you still having trouble breathing?" a man draped in a white gown with a silver monocle asked. His hair reminded Vulcan of those ancient Chinese scholars with long grey beards. He gentle patted Vulcan on his chest and wrist as if he could feel exactly what was going on within his body.
"No doctor Grim. I can breathe properly now without feeling any pain. It's just that I still feel very weak." Vulcan replied in grunts, as if he was disoriented. His voice now was filled with some strength as opposed to the unintelligible babble that came out his mouth before. Barely able to understand the situation and assaulted with pain so great, it's a wonder how he retained his sanity. Bombarded with chants of some sort and the heart wrenching cries of some lady. Not being able to move, speak or see. Vulcan had thought he was in hell. It was only after this doctor who goes by the name of 'Grim' said some weird words, did he sink into unconsciousness.
It has been one (1) week since then. Due to the astounding prowess of the nurses and doctors, his vitality and condition was steadily improving. However as magical as their weird abilities were, it could not regenerate a limb.
"He would remain blinded in his left eye forever and he may never be able to walk again," said one of the doctors to his parents outside the room. They spoke in a hushed tone, but he still heard them, albeit muffled. They were able to reattach his leg to his body but the absolute damage to his nerves made it impossible for Vulcan to move it. The so-called healing magic was useless against it as it seemed that the mana molecules simply passed through it.
One week wasn't a long time, but it was enough for Vulcan to straighten his thoughts. His name was Vulcan Hestal, son of King Edwin and Queen Annais Hestal of the Hestallian kingdom. A small trading nation whose allies were the only reason they remained afloat. As a species they had no knowledge of space or other planets and they call the one we reside on Gaia. Coincidence? Perhaps, but one thing for certain is that he was not from this planet.
Memories of another Vulcan would pop up into his mind whenever something seemingly familiar occurs, which triggers moments of unconsciousness. For instance, when he first learned of the existence of magic, Vulcan zooned out as memories bombarded his consciousness and he recalled someone named Houdini, the supposedly greatest magician to have ever lived. The memories however were very short lived, and after a couple seconds they would fade away. As such he always felt that a part of him was missing, but he couldn't do anything about it. Some more impactful memories would stick whilst most would be forgotten.
---back to present—
"It is expected. You have lost quite a lot of blood and mana. In three weeks', time however, you should be able to move about without issue," doctor Grim said.
Vulcan was shocked. He didn't know why exactly, but hearing what the doctor told him simply amazed him. Even though he knew that the discovery of mana allowed for huge leaps in the medical field as well as others, and even though he himself was able to materialise and manipulate mana, he felt as though it was his first time being exposed to this miraculous element.
"Continue to rest and follow the therapy procedures that we prepared for you and you will be alright in time," doctor Grim said assuredly as he stood up and went to the door. As soon as he said his goodbyes the door flew open as Queen Annais burst through, tears flowing down her eyes. There was nothing she could've done to help, not even stay by her son's side as the procedure required a spherical area of pure mana where Vulcan would lay in the middle. For one whole week, the Queen would be in a constant state of worry, even though she knew her son was alive and improving. What mother wouldn't be. King Edwin followed slowly, with a complicated look in his eyes.
At first, he was happy that Vulcan was recovering. As a father that news brought him immense happiness, but as a King, his son, the Crown Prince, was now crippled for life. If this was a time of peace, it wouldn't have been an issue. Alas, neighbouring hostile kingdoms and evils of old, were starting to become active again. War was imminent and he was not getting younger.
-Oh, Great Ancients. Please Watch Over Us-
The king giving a small prayer to his ancestors, decided at that moment, to simply enjoy what ever time he had left with his family. Who knows, perhaps in some twisted way, this was a blessing in disguise.